Aesthetic

Many animals and plants have evolved parts that appeal to the eye, such as butterfly wings and flowers. Vision in different animals shares a similar mechanism. So, even if an aesthetic part evolved to benefit the eye of a different animal, that aesthetic part can still work on humans – we can enjoy the imagery, too.

Most notably, Lifescaped has successfully copied the structural colour of hummingbirds and some marine animals to produce Pure Structural Colour. As a measure of the potential of biomimetics, this is the brightest colour that exists, and since it involves microstructures rather than colour pigments, it never fades. Pure Structural Colour will soon to appear in a number of commercial products but is also under test for vivid animal markings for use by biologists and to deter poachers.

Further, according to Andrew Parker’s hypothesis, as humans evolved, the very sight of their environment became something that evoked a positive response in their bodies. This uplifting effect evolved to improve an individual’s chances of survival. At Lifescaped, we are taking this principal into the realms of architecture and design, to emulate the profiles of trees that once offered shelter and safety to early humans, and other parts of natural ecosystems that we may have evolved to enjoy. This can be extended to include the sounds and scents of natural environments, and even the touch of some flora.

Performance

The principles behind structures and chemicals in nature can be transferred to commercial products to boost their performance. Structures include shells, whose clever shapes minimize the material needed and contain parts that are all as strong as each other, so there’s no over-engineering as found in our buildings. Then there are the whole bodies of birds and fishes, which flawlessly manipulate the flow of air or water to optimize locomotion. Mussel shells, meanwhile, fix to the spot after evolving chemicals that function as underwater glues, which may equally allow us to bond objects in the sea.

Lifescaped is developing devices with parts that can only be seen under a microscope, including the mud-shedding ‘microstructures’ that cause mud to simply fall off a surface such as that of a Wellington boot or a car mud flap. On a related subject, we consider the management of water on surfaces, originally using ‘super-hydrophobic’ feathers and leaves as our models. Here, we have developed surfaces that can instantly become clear of water.

We build predictive software based on evolutionary events or social animals, which can help to make transport or commercial operations run more efficiently, and also contribute towards the planning of large buildings and towns. For example, we developed a security system for mobile phone payments for Monitse/Visa.

We have considerable focus on optical devices, including super-efficient fibre-optics, and contact lenses incorporating the microstructures that allow some shells to become ultra-transparent.

We are building a portfolio of products in this category, and in so doing attract public attention to the conservation of the species and environments that have inspired our work.

Environment

At Lifescaped, we also have longer-term goals. We are working on projects that impact on renewable energy sources, such as to make more efficient wind and wave turbines and solar panels. Then, we dream of success with the ‘big cases’, emulating: the energy capture of photosynthesis, the energy-efficiency of muscles to replace motors, the waste-recycling capacity of bacteria, the ‘nano’ machines found in cells, the self-assembly processes that lead to self-repair of materials and the enzymes that reduce the energy needed for manufacturing. If we could only make things in the way they are made in nature, we would severely cut the Earth’s energy bill that has left us unsustainable.

Many of our other projects also have an environmentally supportive component. Our water management surfaces also prevent the attachment of marine life to ship hulls, and so have an anti-fouling function (preventing the mixing of environments). Pure Structural Colour will replace some pigments that are currently mined by non-ethical or non-sustainable means, and is also under test for application in rhino horns, to discourage poaching.

We are working with chemicals that have evolved in the skins of berries to protect against the sun’s harmful UV rays. Unlike commercial sunscreens, however, these chemicals appear not to harm the small marine species that inhabit the tidal zones where sunscreens are washed off our bodies.

Then, our projects that contribute to buildings may result in a reduction of raw materials required, which, if employed commonly, would reduce the demand on the Earth’s resources. Further, our work on heat-reflective and heat-absorptive materials in buildings may result in the better use of gas and electricity.

Finally, since rainforests, arctic deserts and coral reefs contain technology that we need ourselves, then we must conserve them; the environment needs saving because it will also support us. This is our new argument for conservation. We aim to spread this message through the production of books, media activities and courses for schools and universities.